Love's Labour's Lost Symbolism, Imagery & Allegory

Rich or poor, the men in the play need people to look up to. The motif of heroes recurs again and again – go to "Shout Outs" for a running list. At one point Armado asks Moth what other great...

In one sense, you could make the argument that Love's Labour's Lost is all about the eyes. Berowne is especially obsessed with them. They are the vehicles through which knowledge reaches the mind,...

Sun, moon, roses, snow, geese, deer, cuckoos: the list of images drawn from nature could go on and on (and does, in Holofernes' lines). Shakespeare infuses his characters' speech with reminders tha...

A play within a play lets us watch characters watching something. This device gives us clues to their character and/or advances the plot. Having spent most of his life in the theater, Shakespeare l...